Praxis Core Reading (5713): strategies that work

The Praxis Core Reading test (5713) is 56 selected-response questions in 85 minutes. That’s roughly 90 seconds per question — enough time if you’re strategic, not enough if you’re re-reading passages from scratch for every question. The good news: Reading is one of the most learnable subtests once you understand what’s actually being tested.

What the test actually tests

The ETS Study Companion for 5713 breaks the content into five categories:

• Key ideas and details — main idea, supporting details, inferences, relationships between ideas.
• Craft, structure, and language skills — how the author uses language, text structure, point of view, vocabulary in context.
• Integration of knowledge and ideas — evaluating arguments, assessing evidence, comparing multiple texts.
• Research skills — navigating reference materials, evaluating sources.
• Foundational skills — some questions test print concepts and literal comprehension at a foundational level.

The majority of questions fall into the first three categories. If you understand an author’s argument and can track the structure of a passage, you’re well set up.

Strategy 1: Read the question before the passage

This is the single highest-leverage habit for Praxis Core Reading. Before you read a passage, scan the questions attached to it. You don’t need to memorise them — just know what you’re hunting for. Are you looking for the main idea? A specific detail? The author’s tone? Knowing this in advance means you read with a purpose, which is far more efficient than reading everything and then figuring out what mattered.

Strategy 2: Map the passage structure in one read

Don’t read to absorb every word. Read to understand the shape of the argument: What is the author’s main claim? What evidence do they offer? Is there a counterargument? Where does the passage shift in direction? A quick mental map of the structure — introduction, key point, supporting evidence, conclusion — gives you a reliable reference for most question types without re-reading from scratch.

Strategy 3: Treat vocabulary-in-context questions differently

When a question asks what a word “most nearly means” in context, go back to the sentence and cover the word. Ask yourself: what word or phrase would make sense in this gap, given everything around it? Then match your prediction to the answer choices. This prevents you from defaulting to the word’s most common meaning, which is often a trap.

Strategy 4: Eliminate confidently on inference questions

Inference questions ask what the author implies or what can be logically concluded from the text. The correct answer is always grounded in something in the passage — it doesn’t require outside knowledge, and it doesn’t overreach. Use elimination aggressively: cross out answers that go further than the text supports, or that contradict something the author actually said. What’s left is usually right.

Strategy 5: Watch for “EXCEPT” and “NOT” questions

These questions ask you to identify which answer choice is not supported by the passage. They’re easy to misread under time pressure. Underline “EXCEPT” or “NOT” when you see it, and flip your usual logic: you’re looking for the odd one out, not the best match.

Managing 85 minutes

Pace yourself from the start. With 56 questions in 85 minutes, you can’t afford to spend five minutes on one question. If you’re stuck, flag it, move on, and return. Most passages have 2–4 questions attached — batch them so you’re not context-switching constantly. On your practice tests, track which question types slow you down. Time lost is usually on re-reads, not on thinking.

The passage types you’ll see

Praxis Core Reading includes literary and informational texts — essays, arguments, historical passages, paired texts, and short reference extracts. You won’t need specialist knowledge of any subject area, but you do need to read comfortably across different styles and registers. If you find academic or formal writing uncomfortable, deliberately practice reading opinion pieces, essays, and science journalism in the weeks before your test.

What your target score means

Reading cut scores are set by individual states. A commonly cited benchmark is 156, but check your state’s requirements — some states set it higher. The ETS website has a per-state lookup tool. Know your target before you start practicing so you know what “good enough” actually looks like.

The Reading subtest is very passable with the right habits. Build the strategies into timed practice now, so they’re automatic on test day.

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— The people of SN Academy